Four Months of Mason

Four months! I can't believe little Mason is four months old already! I have already been back at work for 6 weeks. I am amazed at how quickly little man is changing, growing and learning. Mason is growing like a weed and is my little chunker. He is a solid kid with future linebacker potential! We had his four month appointment today. Everyone had to get shots! Mason received his scheduled immunizations and Leah and I both got our flu shots. Leah handled her flu shot amazingly! She didn't shed a tear and sat still the entire time. She then held my hand when I had to get my flu shot. She held Mason's hand too for all of his shots. She is so sweet! As far as Mason's stats, he weighs 15 pounds 9 ounces (66th percentile) and is 24.5 inches long (36 percentile)! At his last appointment, he was tall and skinny. Now he seems to be short and fat - ha! We saw my niece Alyssa the other weekend and she is 7 months old. My little guy is just about the same size as her (if not bigger)! I weighed Leah this morning and she is 31.5 pounds. Mason is half her weight! He drinks 6 ounces of formula at each feeding and averages about 32-35 ounces a day. We introduced cereal to him a few weeks ago and he did pretty good. We recently tried pears and he liked it much better than the cereal. He is still in a size 2 diaper, but at the rate he is growing, he will be in a size 3 in no time at all. His 3 month size clothes are beginning to fit a little snug.

Mason is the sweetest little thing and makes my heart melt. I just want to eat him up. He is usually pretty happy and laid back most of the time. His acid reflux does act up sometimes, even though he is on medicine. We talked it over with his doctor today and she feels that he is drinking too much formula. She wants us to begin giving him cereal and/or fruits and veggies more frequently. She feels that this will help him with the reflux. He does seem to have his 'canky period' at a consistent time each day though. Otherwise, he is all smiles and 'talks' to us throughout the day. Mason continues to sleep like a champ. He usually goes to bed around 7:30 or 8:00 and sleeps for a good 10-11 hours. It is rare for him to wake up during the night, although it has happened on occasion. He is a little bit more consistent with his nap schedule during the day now.

Mason is still not a fan of tummy time, but we still try all of the time. The doctor told us we need to be doing it 3-4 times a day for 15-20 minutes each time. We have some work to do! We pulled out the jumparoo to see if he would like to sit in it. He looks so small when sitting in it, but he enjoys playing with the toys and gadgets in front of him. Leah has to be the best big sister in the world. She loves her little brother so much. She constantly tends to his needs and is very protective of him. She loves to play with him, hold him, lay on the floor with him and give him hugs and kisses. It melts my heart seeing the two of them together.  

Happy 4 months Mason! We are so blessed to have you in our family.

Sunday Fun Day!

Sunday turned out to be a pretty busy day. It was productive, yet fun. We had an appointment to do the kids pictures at 11:00 am at the Picture People in Oak Brook. I had bought a Groupon (of course) and scheduled a session to get Mason's 3 month pictures done and maybe 'try' to get a few good ones of Mason and Leah together and some of Leah by herself. We were somewhat successful with pictures of Mason, but it didn't go so well with the two of them together or Leah solo. Leah had told us the whole way there that she was going to cooperate and she was going to be a good big sister and take pictures with her little brother. In typical Leah style, she totally clammed up when we got to the studio and became pretty uncooperative. We got one good one of Leah and Mason together and one picture of Leah by herself. It would have been nice if the Picture People offered a little more variety in the pictures/poses. Oh well...I had a Groupon so I didn't shell out a ton of cash. We do have a family shoot coming up in two weeks where we are going to attempt to get a picture we can use for our holiday cards!

 

While we were waiting for our pictures, we went shopping for a bit and then had lunch at Houlihan's in the mall. We went and picked up our pictures and then left Oak Brook. Leah has been asking to see Santa for the past couple of days and has been over the top excited about it. I think this is the first year she really gets it and understands the concept of Santa. We always tell her that she better be a good girl because Santa is watching her. She immediately changes her behavior and says, "Ok, momma." We left Oak Brook and headed over to York Town mall because that is where Santa was that afternoon. I know it is a bit early to go see Santa but we figured we would beat the crowds! Leah talked a big game on the way there and told us how excited she was. I was expecting her to clam up and play the shy game once we arrived. There was absolutely no line and to my surprise, Leah RAN right up to Santa and gave him a big hug!! She was SOOO happy to see him and was not shy at all. She told him what she wanted for Christmas and assured him she has been a good girl all year long. We even got a decent picture of her and Mason and Santa's lap. Leah definitely BELIEVES! I think we might try the Elf on the Shelf this year. She was too little last year, but it could be fun this year!

After seeing Santa we walked around the mall for a bit. Leah was eyeing the train and asked if she could go on it (we've never been). I agreed and we went and purchased a train ticket. We got in line and when it was her turn, she completely chickened out and decided she didn't want to go by herself. I didn't force her so we walked away. About a minute later, she told me she wanted to try again and be a big girl and go on the train. I asked her if she was sure and she said, "Yes." We walked back and got in line and when it was her turn, she walked right onto the purple train car. She was excited and nervous. The train started and they were on their way. She had a blast and would give me a big wave and smile when she passed me. It melted my heart. After going around the track a few times, the ride was over. She came off and asked if she could go again. It made her so happy so I decided to let her go again. We went and bought another ticket and got back in line. She enjoyed the ride just as much the second time around. This was the best day ever (for Leah)! Meeting Santa and riding the train! Oh to be 2 again!

Date Night and God Bless Alyssa Lynn

We were so excited that we got to have a date night this past Saturday! It is far and few between that Rob and I get to go out with no kids. My cousin Lauren and her fiancé Danny volunteered to watch the kiddos for us, so we took them up on their offer. They came over around 4:30 pm and were out the door shortly after. (I know that was early, but hey...we are getting old)! Dinner and drinks were on the agenda for the evening. We had a 6:00 pm reservation at Capital Grill. We were early so we stopped in DOC Wine Bar for a before-dinner drink. Considering it was a wine bar, I felt like I was obligated to have a glass of wine, but I actually opted for martini! (Did I mention we never get out - ha)! After finishing our drinks we walked the short way over to the restaurant. The only reason we decided to go to Capital Grill was because we had a gift card (otherwise it is way out of our price range)! I had a filet and Rob had the seared tuna. It was yummy! I felt like I was in a food coma after we were finished.

It was still pretty early so we went out for drinks afterwards. We went to Trademark Tavern. (It is the old Magnum's on Butterfield). We had come here one time before and really liked it. This time around though was a different story. The service was h.o.r.r.i.b.l.e and it wasn't even that crowded. It took well over 20 minutes for one drink. Obviously we weren't in a hurry, but it was pretty annoying that it took so long. We had two drinks and figured we would hit the road. We were both tired! We were home by 9:15 pm. Woohoo - big night out! Leah and Mason were both good for Lauren and Danny while we were gone, which is always a relief! Thank you guys again for watching them!

We stayed up for a little while and then went to bed. Around 3:00 in the morning Rob woke me up and told me he had been getting sick for the past hour and he felt horrible. He didn't know if it was a stomach bug or something he ate. Poor guy continued to get sick for the next few hours. The next day we were all supposed to go to my niece Alyssa's baptism. Rob was in no condition to go, so I had to fly solo with the kids. Rob also had to leave that afternoon for a business trip. He was definitely not looking forward to traveling feeling the way he did. He had a 5 1/2 drive to Wisconsin. He does not come home until Wednesday night - so I'll be taking care of these babies by myself the next couple of days.

I left the house around 8:15 am with both of the kids. I am one of my niece's god parents, so I needed to be there by 9:00 to meet with the priest. I was a little nervous as to how the morning was going to go, considering I was by myself with the two kids.  They were both on their best behavior during the service. Alyssa looked so cute in her baptism outfit. I am so bummed - I didn't get any pictures because I was so busy with the kids. I am hoping my sister-in-law can send me some! There were a total of 5 people getting baptized that day (3 babies and 2 adults). Leah wanted to come up to the alter with me when it was time for us to go in front of the church. Luckily her Papa (my dad) was able to disract her and she ended up staying by him. My cousin held Mason and all was good! After the baptism, my brother had a luncheon following at Champps. It was nice to spend time with my family. It was a great day! God Bless Alyssa!!

My baby Mase all dressed up and ready to go!

Halloween 2012

We seemed to get in a lot of Fall festivities this year (between going to the pumpkin patch, to having our Halloween party, to carving pumpkins and other fun events). I am glad we were able to do so many Halloween activities! On actual Halloween, I was able to cut out of work a little early to get home to my babies! Rob was off for the day since daycare was closed, so he was home with them all day. I got home around 3:30 pm and Leah helped me get the candy ready for all of the kids. We put on her costume (and got Mase dressed too) and then we hit the neighborhood.

Leah was so excited to go out and trick-or-treat. We started with our neighbors and went around the block. She would only say 'trick or treat' about half of the time because she would get shy. I made sure she always said thank you though. A handful of people on our block were giving out full size candy bars! Leah made out! After trick or treating for 45 minutes, she told us she was ready to go home. This was fine with us since it was pretty chilly outside.

After we got home, kids came by the herds! We had SO many kids come by the house. Leah kept referring to the trick or treaters as 'customers.' She'd say, "mom, there are more customers here!" It was cute. She really enjoyed handing out the candy to the kids. She would take her time and drop candy into everyone's bag. Towards the end of trick or treating hours, we ran out of candy. (I had bought 12 bags of candy!!!) There are TONS of kids in our neighborhood. I resorted to pulling out granola bars and fruit snacks from our pantry.

Overall, Leah had a fun Halloween. Next year, Mase will be right there with her! I can't wait!

Happy Held-O-Ween

Yesterday we hosted our 3rd annual kids Halloween party! It turned out be a pretty good day. The weather was nice (sunny and 60 degrees). I wish it was a tad bit warmer, but I'm glad it didn't rain. Leah dressed up as a cow girl and Mason was a little cow. He is so dang cute! Leah gave me a hard time with her costume. She refused to wear the cow girl hat and the scarf around her neck. She did wear the cow girl boots though which surprised me! She was also pretty uncooperative when I tried to take her picture. I didn't get any cute ones of her in her costume or any pictures with her and Mason. What a little stinker!

Moo!!

Yee Haw!

We had about 35 kids come for the fun. Almost all of our friends were able to make it this year (but we missed the ones that couldn't be there). Some of my girlfriends that I haven't seen in forever came with their kids too. (Kathryn, Sasha and Erin - I loved spending time with you! We need to get together again real soon).

Our pumpkin patch!

Love it!!

Uncle Jeff with Mason and Alyssa

Erin and Cam

Sweet Avery

Minnie Mouse Annabelle

Emma and Gavyn - how cute are they?

Fireman Jack

Scary Colin!

Brian, Jack, Wayne and Aubree

Auntie Lisa and Mason

Sasha, Kathryn, Me and Erin. Miss these girls - we used to do everything together!

Patti, Me, Jaime and Sara

We had plenty to eat and drink. I made BBQ chicken sandwiches and hot dogs (for the kids) in crock pots. I made a few other apps and everyone brought something to share. I wish there were more hours in the day. I saw tons of cute ideas of Pinterest, but some of them got chopped because I ran out of time. Rob was in charge of alcohol. He went to Binny's and was a kid in a candy store. He must have gotten about 9 different kinds of beer. (We have PLENTY leftover if anyone wants to come by for drinks - ha)!!

The festivities for our party included a bounce house and pony rides. Earlier this year, we went to a party that had ponies and it was such a hit with the kids that we decided to get them for our party. Leah loved the pony rides and was so excited when they pulled up. There were two ponies - Rocket and Raisin. Between the bounce house and going on the ponies - Leah was in heaven! We also had pumpkins for all of the kids and set up a pumpkin decorating table. We bought a 'bubble machine' too and I swear it is the best invention ever! The kids had fun chasing bubbles around the driveway. We finished the night up with a pumpkin piñata filled with all sorts of candy!

Thank you to everyone that came out! We sure had fun and look forward to doing it again next year!